This application claims priority to British Patent Application 0023994.7 filed Sep. 30, 2000.
The invention to which this application relates is an improvement to electrical apparatus and in particular, although not necessarily exclusively, to a broadcast data receiver.
Broadcast data receivers can be provided as an item of apparatus which can be connected to display apparatus such as a television set or, alternatively can be provided as an integral component of the television set.
In either case the receiver is provided to allow the reception of data which is broadcast from a broadcaster at a remote location and said data is increasingly transmitted in a digital format in which multiple streams of data representing video, audio and/or auxiliary data are transmitted from the service provider to a number of recipients. The data can be transmitted via known satellite, cable or terrestrial transmission systems. When received, the data is decoded and processed to combine the same into a format to generate known television signals via the television set. In many cases the receiver is equipped with a means to allow conditional access to services, which access is normally achieved by the insertion of a card carrying data thereon, known as a SMART card. The Smart card can be read and processed by a xe2x80x9creaderxe2x80x9d device provided in the receiver. These cards are typically of a credit card size.
It is also known for broadcast data receivers to support further features such as the storage of data. As the receiver is typically provided with a telecommunications link which allows the transmission of data to and from the receiver, e-mail services, home shopping or internet services can also be provided. The aim of the present invention is to provide a further useful feature to the broadcast data receiver which allows the same to become an increasingly useful item of electrical apparatus.
If one now turns to a mobile telephone handset, these are becoming increasingly popular and furthermore can now be used to generate e-mail and have access to the Internet. The mobile phone includes at the core of its operating system a SIM card on which operating data and user specific data can be stored. This data is stored on the card which is inserted in the phone and so the card can only be used with that phone and there is no easy way in which to transfer the information therefrom.
According to a first aspect of the present invention provides, there is provided a broadcast data receiver (BDR), said BDR receiving data from a broadcaster at a remote location and processing and decoding said data to provide video, audio and/or auxiliary data, and characterised in that said BDR is provided with means for the reception of a SIM card from a mobile phone and means for reading and processing data provided on said SIM card, thereby allowing said SIM card data to be stored, viewed and/or utilised via said BDR.
In one embodiment the SIM card is required to be placed in a holder which is of a dimension to fit in an insertion slot in the broadcast data receiver so as to allow the data on the SIM card to be at the correct location for the reading device. This also allows the reading device which is used to be the same as that used for reading the credit card sized SMART card which the receivers are conventionally required to be able to accept.
In one embodiment the receiver is provided to enable information from the SIM card to be generated on the screen of the television set connected thereto so that, for example, the memory of the SIM card which includes the mobile phone users phone book of names and numbers, can be accessed and the phone book details generated on screen for users to select.
Data stored on the SIM card can also be updated via the broadcast data receiver such as by typing the data into the phone book via a keyboard or other device connected to the receiver and/or copying data from other applications in the broadcast data receivers, such as by copying from an e-mail application. In this embodiment the reader device will also have a write facility.
In a further embodiment the data from the SIM card can be used to generate a number and name memory in the broadcast data receiver which allows the same to be used to make calls via the telecommunication line.
In a further embodiment the data from the SIM card can be copied to memory in the broadcast data receiver such that if the mobile phone is lost, damaged or stolen, the data can still be accessed via the memory in the broadcast data receiver and, if required, transferred to a new SIM card of a new phone which the user may find.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of using a broadcast data receiver, said BDR receiving data from a broadcaster at a remote location and processing and decoding said data to provide video, audio and/or auxiliary data and characterised in that said method includes the steps of inserting a SIM card from a mobile phone either directly or indirectly into reception means of a BDR, part or all of data stored in memory means on said SIM card being read and/or processed by reader means in said BDR, thereby allowing said SIM card data to be stored, viewed and/or utilised via said BDR.